This past Saturday, Roger Aaberg posted on the Starbuck Men’s Veterans Auxiliary Facebook page, a story that caught the eye of many. It’s well worth repeating and quoting Roger’s message as written ~

“Good morning … Please read this story … So last night we helped the VFW Post 4582 with their monthly steak and chop fry. I walked around with two towels looking busy but mostly talking to the customers. There was a group of 8 guys that looked about my age but I had never seen any of them .. had to ask … Do you guys live around here? .. The answer was no so now we need to find out more .. Right? So without a lot of details here is what happened after I asked the first question …

They were from Wisconsin … going to Devil’s Lake for a week of fishing … staying at the Lakes Area Inn in Starbuck … They wanted to go out for a cocktail so Kevin suggested the New “Tavern” .. so they went … when they wanted to eat and found out that the Tavern had a limited menu … The “Tavern” suggested they go to the VFW for the Steak Fry so they did … They were at the VFW for a couple hours and a few were veterans so were impressed by the memorial ceiling tiles and the crowd and the service … They left and went back to the hotel …

This morning I noticed several pickups with boats and trailers lined up at the Casey’s gas station … It was them .. so I drove by and Thanked them for staying in Starbuck .. Had to ask them how they ended up in Starbuck .. They said it was because the hotel had 4 rooms with two beds so the 8 of them could stay in the 4 rooms .. They make the trip every year … The 2 guys I was talking to said …WE WILL BE BACK … EVERYONE WAS FRIENDLY AND IT WAS ALMOST LIKE YOU KNEW WE WERE COMING.

“SERVING WITH AN ATTITUDE OF GRATITUDE” …Well done to all involved.

And that is “The rest of the story”~

The story is an example of hospitality at its best and how supporting each other can make a difference! It’s about life in a town where everyone can be an ambassador by welcoming visitors, engaging with them to learn a bit more about what brings them to our community and then sharing all the wonderful experiences, services and new friends they can meet up and down the street. It’s quite a compliment to have someone feel so welcome and then say, “…It was almost like you knew we were coming.” That’s kindness at the ready.